Leather interiors are out, vegan is in

You want luxury? Get leather. For years, the leather interior in cars were always a good indication that a consumer splurged for the top of the line trim level. This applies to most cars, not all however. It’s like a necessity in a top of the line trim. Everything must be lined in leather nowadays, or even made to look like it is lined in leather. Consumers usually associate leather with luxury or class, so much so that they invest in modifying their cloth seats covering them in plastic leather, or even real cow hide.

Well you’d be wrong to think that all leather in cars come from cows. Instead most leathers that are found in car interiors are made of synthetic, unless you go up into the higher range of the pricing spectrum. It is getting more and more expensive to line interiors with leather nowadays. Times have changed, and killing a cow is no longer needed in order to simulate the feel of a leather interior.

People are getting more and more conscious of the ethical sourcing of their items. The term vegan has been a hot key word as of late. Many people have been asking for cruelty-free products. Don’t kill animals they say. Jaguar and Land Rover have an answer to the demands of these vegans, by featuring a leather interior that is pleasant, but not quite leather.

There are a growing number of people who are concerned with the provenance of the textiles and materials in their vehicle,

Massimo Frascellacreative director, Land Rover

Eucalyptus fibers are used in the production of the material. The brand’s Eucalyptus Melange is a textile that uses significantly less water than Alcantara or plastic, and it contains a wool blend that feels soft to the touch. It can also be dyed a multitude of colors. Dinamica Suedecloth is a flameproof and extremely durable suede-like microfiber material that can be spun into a fine fiber that comes from plastic bottles. On average 53 bottles are used for one vehicle.

Land Rover and Jaguar aren’t the only ones pioneering the latest in sustainable seating materials. Volvo is also looking to make its interiors sustainable. A minimum of 25% of all the total plastics used in new models by 2025 will be the brand’s goal in the coming future.

Closer to home, Toyota plans to make its seat cushions vegan. They plan to use glycol from sugarcane rather than glycol derived from petroleum. Hyundai sources ground volcanic rock to form support pillar coverings in its sedans. Ford has also developed foam that come from soybeans.

It helps that many manufacturers are sensitive when it comes to the idea of sustainability. Synthetic leather on its own make up an industry that is worth around $45 billion. Maybe in the future, ethically sourced interiors will trump the traditional leather leather lang mental that consumers might have when it comes to car interiors. It doesn’t matter if you have leather in your interior, what matters more now is that your car leaves a message of sustainability in the wake of its creation.